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Olde Good Things

Architectural and Altered Antiques

How to Reuse Antique Tin Ceiling Sheets

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Choose Your Finish

Wall applications have recently been the popular trend with such materials as antique tin, reclaimed wood, salvaged copper & custom wallpaper, with the most common uses being as an accent wall, kitchen backsplash, or around the base of a bar or island. In the design world, pressed metal ceiling tin is known for its texture and design.  If you add the quality of antique distressed paint to this already decorative medium, you’ll have an artist’s pallet. We have acquired a large quantity of antique fish tin throughout the years. You can purchase it by the square foot, with a 20 square foot minimum. You have your choice to have the tin just stripped then cleaned, cleaned & sealed, or cleaned, painted & sealed. View the finishes below, shown as a square foot piece.

Customer Showcase

In this designer showcase, we are showing you how renowned designer Erica Diskin from Assembly Design Studio used this medium as a tin wall application. The restaurant is Six String Grill & Stage located in Foxboro, MA, next to Gillette Stadium. As many of our readers are aware, it is sometimes difficult to envision a pile of rough scrap metal transformed into an actually useful and decorative element in their design project.  Some designers really do have a knack for making this transformation, and Erica is one of them.  Olde Good Things has been using antique ceiling tin for many years to make decorative wall panels and frames for mirrors.  Erica’s example is unusual in that she used recycled tin sheets put together to form a tin mural.  While taking a look at the photos, take note of the industrial flooring oak table tops. The reclaimed wood tops were custom-made in our table shop.

 

Purchasing Tips

  • You must know the exact square footage and the exact size of the wall, so we can determine how to cut it. Minimum of 20 square feet per order.
  • You must know what color if you choose to have it finished. Click Here for Color Chart
  • You must know if you want antique tin fish or replica fish tin. Keep in mind, the distressed areas are darker silver on the antique tin. The new replica tin is bright silver in the distressed area with a cleaner finish.
  • All orders will take 3-4 weeks to process. Plan accordingly.

An Art Nouveau Trademark Meissen Stove to Mantel Conversion

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After a rare Meissen Stove with was swept up from our Olde Good Things Scranton, Pa warehouse, the client was generous enough to share the transformative conversion from relic to custom mantel and fireplace surround step-by-step.

Meissen was the first porcelain manufacturer in Europe. The art nouveau ovens from the German fireclay manufactories are works of art in themselves, and this particular Meissen stove appeared in Architectural Digest. The top portion of the stove was a frieze depicting a farmer’s dance. Two female figures flank the ornate cast iron grill. Each detailed green tile bears the Meissen stamp and designer’s name on the back… a world-renowned trademark of quality and craftsmanship.

Before Photo

Planning and Design:

Like most projects, the client says, planning took a lot of time and adjustment. Each tile was photocopied at the original size. The clients did not want to enlarge the opening of the fireplace, and, instead, decided to make the opening smaller. After measuring the opening, dimensions were traced on a sheet of plywood. Then, the clients added in the dimensions of the gas inserts to the preliminary drawing.

The tiles were arranged on the plywood sheet to determine a satisfactory negotiation of space that would allow for an even number of tiles to be included, plus the ¼” of grout space between each one. The original tiles were shifted into a final design, while a second design board on poster backing was laid out with the photocopies. This allowed the clients to visualize how the design would interact with the room space vertically.

Building and Navigating Irregularities:

The design was attached from the base upward — tile was leveled and secured to the wall, a wood frame, and to neighbor tiles with epoxy. Wood framing was used to close the space between design and wall and for additional integrity. The insert was added around the opening after the first round of tiles to prevent damage to the tiles and to leave room for adjustment. After all, tiles were installed and colors adjusted, grout was applied. The clients tested various sealants to add gloss to the repainted areas.

Tiles were individually treated to adjust thickness, to create one tile from two for some portions of the mantel, and to repair any chips or missing pieces — plaster was used to make them fuller and fill in the gaps. Others were sawed to make smaller. Meanwhile, a steel frame was constructed to hold the rows of tiles. The clients used acrylic paint to mix and match the colors needed to cover epoxy and shallow chips.

 

The clients minimized the dimensions of the fireplace opening with fireproof materials and electrical and gas hookups that matched the chosen insert. They installed a smart outlet for easy control and efficiency in the mantel top.

The project was a process of constant adjustment to the irregularities and waiting for epoxy to dry at a rate of one layer per day, the client remarked. “The goal was authenticity as opposed to perfection.”

 

 

This Meissen tile customer showcase is a prime example of the incorporation of classic design and authentic craftsmanship from our reclaimed architectural finds at Olde Good Things. Visit our online selections of salvaged architectural goods and altered antiques at www.oldegoodthings.com, or drop by one of our locations.

From Factory to Pantry

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In 2014, Olde Good Things salvaged panes of industrial aqua pebbled chicken wire glass from the Hamilton Manufacturing Co. building in Two Rivers, Wisconsin.

Our inventive customers at White Magdelena House, a home furnishings store and interior design studio in Hingham, Massachusetts, recently sent us photos of how they incorporated this uniquely colored glass into one of their design projects.

The industrial windows now serve as a barn-style sliding door for a pantry, beautifully demonstrating how our Olde Good Glass can be used to create privacy and partition spaces. Our compliments to the designers and installers!

We are currently sold out of aqua glass, but we do have plenty of other chicken wire glass, as well as other types of vintage reclaimed glass, in stock. Our glass shop also offers additional treatments like mirroring and frosting. Contact us to talk about your next project!

Industrial Window Finds Its Way Home

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We love seeing how our customers put their Olde Good Things to use – especially when that use is creative and unexpected.

This 15-light steel window with pebbled glass was salvaged from a commercial building, and we imagined it finding new life in an industrial space. Customer Kris Rodammer, a creative director and brand design consultant in Boston, had a cozier image in mind – he installed it as an interior window between the kitchen and hallway in his Brookline home.

Interior windows brighten a space, and the pebbled glass in this particular window invites soft, textured light into the hallway while creating a feeling of openness in the kitchen. Six of the lights pivot on a center hinge, allowing control over the flow of sound and air by opening and closing the window. The clean lines are a perfect complement to the classic design of Rodammer’s home.

Feeling inspired? Shop our reclaimed industrial windows and bring home one of your own.

Show Off Your Style in Our Customer Showcase

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We love seeing what our customers do with their Olde Good Things. There isn’t much that makes us happier than seeing your photos of our items “in the wild” – an antique tin mirror hanging in an apartment or café, a chain leg table anchoring a newly renovated kitchen, salvaged stained glass windows bringing gorgeous color into a luxury bathroom.

We also love to share these photos with the world. In the past, we’ve highlighted some beautiful and creative uses of Olde Good Things in the Customer Showcase section of our blog. These articles are promoted across our social media and in our email newsletter, which goes out weekly to over 10,000 subscribers.

Now, we’re inviting you to participate! Whether you’re a homeowner, artist, designer, contractor, landscaper, or just someone who loves antiques, we want to hear from you.

If you’d like to be part of our Customer Showcase series, here’s what we’ll need from you:

  1. High-quality photos of your work – at least 3200 x 2400 px – with attribution information (how would you like us to credit your photos?)
  2. Context – tell us your story! What kind of project are/were you working on? How did you find Olde Good Things? Why did you choose this particular item (or items)?
  3. Permission – please confirm that we have your permission to use your photos and your story on our blog, and let us know any preferences you have for how we identify you (for example, if you only want us to use your first name, or you want us to include a link to your design firm, etc.).

Please email your photos and information to [email protected]. We’ll choose our favorites to feature on our blog in 2019-2020!

Here’s our 3 latest Customer Showcases!

Boston Showcase at the Broadway Restaurant

Texas Showcase at the a’Bouzy Restaurant

Colonial Eatery Brings Repurposed Architectural Elements

 

 

Boston Showcase at the Broadway Restaurant

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Olde Good Things has always enjoyed working with interior designers, decorators and those people who have a vision for how they want a particular space to work. Some of our favorite spaces to work in are restaurants because the décor can completely transform a space, yet it should have a function. So, when Erica Diskin of Assembly Design Studio in Boston contacted us for items that would be used in a remodeled restaurant, we were more than happy to help.

Erica and her team were tasked with creating the décor for The Broadway, a bar and restaurant in south Boston. Formerly the Boston Beer Garden, restaurateur Joey Acari decided he and his team needed a change after having spent more than two decades inhabiting the space. Acari has also converted another of his restaurants, the Playwright, into The Punk & Poet to try and keep up with the everchanging demands of the neighborhood.

Featuring wood elements salvaged from Boston Beer Garden, subway tiles and steel accents throughout the interior, the décor of the Broadway is decidedly of an industrial influence. To help enhance this aesthetic, we worked with Erica to come up with items that would fit perfectly with this décor. Holophane lights were used over tables and booths, while industrial style wall sconces were placed throughout the restaurant. Chicken wire glass was used to create partitions to section off areas of the restaurant, while copper doors were used to ingeniously hide wall-mounted televisions when not in use.

Opened on November 15th, Broadway features wide booths, communal seating and two bars within the restaurant as well as a packed menu featuring wood-fired pizzas and a cocktail list who’s highlight is a nitro cold-brewed draft martini.

If you’re a designer looking for your next piece of inspiration, stop by any of our Olde Good Things stores in New York City or Los Angeles, our giant warehouses in Scranton, Pennsylvania or at our webstore ogtstore.com. We’re not only certain you’ll find the right piece for your next project, but we’ll also offer you 15% off your purchase. Call us or stop by, we’d be glad to help you.

Texas Showcase at the a’Bouzy Restaurant

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When restaurateur Shawn Virene proposed his first solo endeavor, a’Bouzy, he had a very particular vision in mind; a culinary haven where fine wines and great food have an equal place at the table.

a’Bouzy, named after the French village Bouzy located in the heart of the Champagne region, features an effervescent and coastal Mediterranean ambience echoing the namesake’s region throughout with an open layout, exposed brick and reclaimed wood.

Olde Good Things had the pleasure of working with Shawn and his team during the design process, in the hopes of bringing a mix of both modern and antique touches to round out his ideas for the space.

To help maximize seating capacity without sacrificing space, Olde Good Things recommended our custom-built industrial wood top swing seats in the bar and in the outdoor seating areas. These seats provide a classic industrial look with modern accents. As a counter to this modern seating solution, we suggested a set of 3 antique blown glass lattice pendant lights to help anchor the space. Throughout the dining room, Shawn and his team chose to use our Altered Antiques industrial wood flooring topped tables paired with Brooklyn cast iron legs to add a worn-in vintage feel.

At Olde Good Things, we enjoy working with restaurateurs and designers to help bring their ideas to life. We offer a wide variety of both custom-built and salvaged antique products to suit any need as well as providing special pricing for the restaurant industry. So, whether you’re looking to add elements of industrial, rustic, modern, or vintage, Olde Good Things has something for every design aesthetic.

Clear Chicken Wire Glass 25% Off

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Anyone involved in even the simplest restoration, often finds themselves in search of original vintage glass perhaps for a broken glass door panel, or even an upgrade to a farmhouse chic look for their kitchen cabinetry and finds themselves searching for sources of this hard to find commodity.  Olde Good Things has been reclaiming chicken wire glass for years from many old factories and buildings and has become a reliable source for various styles of this unique architectural element.

Reclaimed Clear Chicken Wire Glass

 

Rescued from the dark depths of famous, industrial sites throughout the United States, our vintage chicken wire glass has character and history. With durability that doubles in comparison to regular glass, chicken wire glass, also known as safety glass, is also shatterproof, making it perfect for those notorious cabinet slammers in your house.

Chicken wire glass works especially well when used for wine cabinets and china cabinets. This glass intercepts over 99% of ultraviolet rays, protecting wine from rancidity and family heirlooms and pictures from discoloration caused by exposure to direct sunlight.

From a thesis entitled:  WIRE GLASS: HISTORY OF TECHNOLOGY & DEVELOPMENT by KONSTANDENA KEFALLINOS
“The Industrial Revolution was a period of amazing evolution in the history of glass manufacture.  Plate glass technology allowed for new design and building construction concepts, but this was an imperfect technology. As the brilliant minds of the Revolution struggled to grapple with the obstacles posed by plate glass, wire glass was eventually developed. This new glass type spread across the United States in subsequent years, and eventually wire glass was associated with safety given its fire retardant and shatterproof qualities.  Wire glass was technically incredibly difficult to produce, especially in mass production, and although inventors experimented with various treatments and patterns, wire glass remained and was comparatively expensive (though people generally believed the safety benefits outweighed the costs). Wire glass fell into disfavor during the World Wars as it was replaced by newer types of glass that were more economical, but recent trends have sparked renewed interest in the use and hence preservation of wire glass. Original methods of wire glass manufacture using early wire netting patterns no longer exist…”

Thus we have made it one of the top salvage priorities to reclaim this glass and make it available once again for public use.

Our customers from Cata Restaurant has found their own ways to highlight clear chicken wire glass in their business, view below!

Cata Restaurant

 

We also have an unusual offering of oversized sheets 53 in. W x 81.75 in. H to cover large areas.  As many architectects and designers know who shop for vintage glass, large sheets of glass are quite a serendipitous find.

For the first time ever, we are offering Clear Chicken Wire Glass 25 % off which formulates it to $30 a square foot.

As stated, sizes range in sheets up to 53 in. W x 81.75 in. H.  and we will gladly cut to specific size requirements at no additional charge.

Please view online below or call to get your quote for your next project, 888.233.9678.

 

Colonial Eatery Brings Repurposed Architectural Elements

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The Assembly Design Studio designers of Ledger, a local restaurant and bar on New England’s North Shore, envisioned a “rough restoration” of the historic Salem Savings Bank — a place where customers could relax in a contemporary dining space and absorb the colorful history of Salem.

Salem Savings was erected in 1818 and is the second oldest incorporated savings bank in America. Notable bank customers of bygone days include Salem-born Nathaniel Hawthorne, dark romantic author of The Scarlet Letter, and Alexander Graham Bell, who patented the first telephone.

History comes in many flavors at this modern eatery. Regional cuisine is on the menu, inspired by traditional Colonial New England cooking techniques and local fish, meat, and produce. Local fare, cocktails mixed behind a leathered white macaubus granite bar, and fresh seafood from the oyster bar are offered in an authentic vintage industrial atmosphere. The restaurant’s decor was formed from the existing raw materials of the historic building, accentuated with reclaimed materials and distinctive pieces of architectural salvage. In the entry, visitors will walk through a glass and metal vestibule which showcases the original plaster ceiling and a custom 82” chandelier. A bank teller window adds to the ambience as guests enter the dining area, where a repurposed communal white oak table provides seating for 22. A contemporary wall crafted from metal safety box doors lends an industrial edge to the dining area, while a bank vault houses the walk-in refrigerator.

Exposed iron beams and rough brick and wood architecture provided a raw palette for the designers of Ledger to work with. Custom charred wood planking was incorporated into the design, a material reminiscent of Salem’s powerful and dark history which includes the Witch Trials and Great Fire of 1914. Other authentic details include distressed leather barstools, tufted banquettes, tile from the 1930s, and historic bank ledgers used for artistic display.

Ledger’s sophisticated vintage holophane lighting hails from the 1920s era and was supplied by Olde Good Things. The soft ambience of the fixtures offers a stark contrast to the lofty reclaimed wood inset on the ceiling and exposed iron beams. Our industrial Holophane light fixtures are sourced from factories across the Northeast and are a reminder of the Golden Age of “scientific illumination”. OGT’s extensive selection of Holophane fixtures from the 20s and 30s is salvaged and restored in our shop.

Besides their widespread usage in industry, the luminaires are ideal for contemporary commercial usage to illuminate a space without glare or dark spots. They are very popular in auction houses and amongst reclamation connoisseurs for their economical and efficient dispersion of light, along with the historic magnetism of their design.

Most Popular Holophanes

Shop all Holophane online, here.

For questions about our Designer discount, view here.

Decorating in Style with Vintage Mosaic & Subway Tiles

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When most people think of tiles, they conjure up images of those horrendously tacky squares of cheap porcelain that crowd the floor of many older homes. Fortunately, when we talk about tiles we are talking about the classic, beautifully made, and carefully salvaged vintage and antique tile that we’ve had the privilege of adding to our growing inventory.

Vintage Off White Subway Tile – Photo Credit: Bloglovin’

With so many exquisite pieces entering our showroom we are eager to share with our customers a few creative decorating ideas that incorporate vintage and antique tiles.

Decorating your living room

Decorating with tile requires that you have either a friend in construction or a skill at creative repurposing. If you want to make a show stopping conversation piece, why not take on old coffee table and decorate the top of the table by making a mosaic of broken salvaged tiles. All you need is sandpaper, tiling cement, your choice of color or plain grout, and a selection of hand-picked vintage tile from Olde Good Things. If you don’t have an old coffee table, consider using a side table, or repurposing an old trunk. Get creative and enjoy the process.

If you’d rather leave your furniture as is, why not reface your old fireplace? Using vintage or antique tiles to add color or drama to your fireplace is a great way to make something old sooty into something “olde good”.

 

Wining & dining on vintage tiles

The sheer number of remodeling shows on TV can be staggering, but many of them provide our customers with great repurposing ideas. If you’re planning to remodel your kitchen and you want to add flair that cannot be bought at Home Depot you should piece together a backsplash made entirely of salvaged vintage tiles.

Check out this photo of a backsplash that literally catches the eye and makes the heart smile! Bright, colorful, and fun!

 

Why reusing vintage tiles is “green”

If you’re looking for something that will stand the test of time and make you feel great about your materials choices, you have to call Lowes, cancel that order for bathroom tiles, and tile your bathroom using salvaged subway tiles. When you reuse old tiles you are adding an “eco-friendly” stamp to your project which can actually increase the value of your property.

Here is a selection of tile that would be perfect for a bathroom remodel.

Olde Good Things is doing its part to make the world a beautiful place, one tile at a time. It’s up to you to check out what we have in stock and let your imagination run wild.

Do you have any creative ideas for reusing vintage and antique tile? Let us know and feel free to share your photos on our Facebook page.

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